Home for the Holidays
by Lady Elisabeth
Summary: Christmas can be stressful, and Christmas can be joyful. Kagome's experienced both in her fifteen years. But never before has her Christmas season been, frankly, so hilarious. InuKag. Drabble series!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

Author's Note- Inuyasha Christmas drabble series. Not much more to it than that. All are, to some extent, based off of various experiences I've had this Christmas season. Bear with me if not all of them follow the plot exactly as I've set it up here (some may occur before the following drabble). Also, yes I am aware that the Japanese probably don't celebrate Christmas like we do. I've obviously taken a lot of liberties. ;)

Just try to relax and enjoy, if you would(: MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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><p><strong>Preface- Home for the Holidays<strong>

**Word Count- 578**

_Come on… you remember the midpoint formula, you __do!__ It's gotta be __somewhere__ in your memory… _As she finished the last question on her Geometry midterm exam, Kagome Higurashi came to one simple conclusion.

This subject was worthy of the seventh circle of hell.

Sighing with relief as the bell rang, she rushed out of the school building without bothering to tell her friends goodbye. Because it was Friday. Her exams were over. Winter Break was here. And most of all, Inuyasha was waiting impatiently for her to leave so she could return through the well.

"_A whole two weeks where you won't miss school to come hunt for shards?" he'd exclaimed. "We're making the most of it!" _It was the only reason she'd been able to return for the full week of review and cramming before the tests.

A mere half hour later, she was riding on Inuyasha's back as they sped through the Feudal Era countryside. Miroku, Sango, and Shippo kept pace on Kirara flying above.

The entire afternoon passed by without any sign of a jewel shard, and that evening as they set up camp, Kagome decided to broach a subject she knew would be touchy. Really, she hated to do this to Inuyasha… but in the face of her mother's guilt trip earlier that week, she really couldn't back down.

"Hey, Inuyasha… well, in a couple days… ?"

Which of course, despite its speed, resulted in an explosion from the irritated hanyou over the issue of how often she went home and their pressing quest against Naraku, after which she had to explain what Christmas was and why her mother really, really wanted her home. Why she really, really wanted to go home.

Shippo especially found the idea of Christmas exciting, and she promised to bring him her candy when she returned after the holiday. ("What do you mean, _returned_? Keh, nobody said you could go in the first place!")

"So, if you guys wouldn't mind too much," she concluded, sending a pleading glance Inuyasha's way, "I'd like to spend at least a few days, maybe even a week, with my family, for the holiday."

"I'm sure none of us would find it a bother," Sango replied, glaring at the sulking hanyou. "Besides, look at this weather. Traveling's going to be miserable." She gestured at the wet, foggy clouds casting a grey, dull light over the earth.

"Yes, Lady Kagome, by all means, go spend some time with your family," Miroku added. "It would give me and my dear Sango more time to spend tog-" He was abruptly cut off by the aforementioned taijiya's slap as his hand wandered a big too far for her liking.

"Shut up, you perverted monk."

"Well, it's settled, then," Kagome said briskly. "I'll go home again in the morning, and come back as soon as Christmas is over!"

After that, everyone readied themselves for a day of traveling the next day, and went to sleep, Inuyasha leaping up into a tree, grumbling to himself.

That night, as everyone lay sleeping, Inuyasha came down. Kagome was woken up by his whisper.

"Hey, Kagome."

"Mm."

"Can I… come back with you, for this 'Christmas' thing?"

"…why would you want to?"

"Feh. Somebody's gotta look out for you, wench. This holiday business sounds like trouble."

"Okay." She laughed a little. After all, the thought of Christmas being dangerous or difficult? Please.

However, she hadn't factored Inuyasha into the equation.

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note: So yup, not very long. All around 500 words or so. And most are meant to be funny, although a few are more serious. ^_^ Hope you enjoy my little Christmas present! Series will be finished today, in a rapid sequence of updates, by around eight to ten o'clock. I hope.<p>

Review please! Hope you get a laugh or two by the end. (:

Happy birthday, Jesus!

-Lady E


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

Author's Note- It's been what, two minutes? ;) Here's the next one. This one isn't meant to be _as_ funny- this little subplot thing is kind of the heart of the story. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Word Count- 478<strong>

**Have Yourself A Beary Little Christmas**

**Part One**

It was December in Tokyo, Japan. And a fourteen year old Kagome Higurashi was standing in a little sample shop, wandering around the merchandise with a bored, politely curious expression on her features.

Only a few days remained until Christmas Eve, which her mother had been preparing for and busying herself over all month. The same woman was just behind her in the small store, looking about with cheer, searching for more gifts to send to her sister and her husband. So when Kagome found the bear, sitting on a little stool among toddler items, the lady almost ran into her.

"Kagome, dear, what is it?" she asked at her daughter's now-enamored posture. "Have you found something for Aunt Akemi?"

"No, but Mama, just look! Isn't he so _cute_?"

The small teddy bear was white and very, very soft. He had a brown nose and eyes, and two round, white ears sitting atop his head. The girl fondled them absentmindedly as she took the animal from the stool and displayed him for her mother to see.

"Oh, come now, Kagome. Aren't you too old for such things now?" Mama told her, with a smile all the same.

"Are you kidding? I love stuffed animals, and he's just so _adorable_, Mama!" What the teen didn't say was that this bear meant much more to her than just as a toy that she should have outgrown an interest for years ago.

After a moment of deliberation on the part of her mother, she gave in with a sigh. "All right," the woman conceded, taking the small white animal from her daughter. "But you have to act surprised!"

Christmas morning came, a few days later, and with it, the little white bear. Kagome good-naturedly dealt with the teasing from Souta and her grandfather as she made a fuss over the toy, smiling and laughing at herself.

But later, in the afternoon, she sat on her bed with the bear in her lap, thinking.

Lately, she'd been thinking about her future. Her fifteenth birthday was not far away, just about four months from now, and something felt like it was about to change. Something big.

She couldn't help imagining what her family might look like at Christmas, ten years from this day, and wondering if she might be married and making a family of her own. Clutching the bear to her chest, she wondered if she might have a baby by then.

If so, she decided, feeling the bear's soft head and little round ears, then this loveable little teddy bear would be her child's.

She could almost pretend the child was in her arms already, holding the small form of the toy, except for the ears. She giggled to herself. Now wouldn't it be something strange, her baby with little animal ears?

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note- Repaso, por favor! Feliz Navidad!<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

Let the hilarity ensue. (:

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><p><strong>Word Count- 628<strong>

**O, Christmas Tree**

Inuyasha sat in a crouch, staring at the lit evergreen tree standing in the main room of the Higurashi household. A growl rumbled from within his chest as he stared with frustration at the chubby calico feline hiding in relative safety among the lower branches.

The house was decorated cheerily, red and green hanging from everything and colorful lights lining the outside of the house and the trees that stood in the yard. The angel sitting atop the tree had yellow hair and wore a red dress, her wings made of metal wire painted gold. She looked down on all the room with a peaceful, serene expression. Christmas was only a week away, and finally all the decorating had been finished. Kagome was out shopping with her mother and Souta, and her grandfather was away at some winter party with old friends of his. All was quiet and peaceful.

_Except for this idiot cat!_

It was sheltered away in the branches of the tall tree, secure in the knowledge that the hanyou couldn't reach it without breaking half of the ornaments on the tree in the process. Inuyasha knew it too, and he inwardly winced at the thought of how hard Kagome would sit him if she came home to a destroyed tree, after all her and her mother's work the previous week.

But_ dang_ it, that stupid, sad excuse for a feline was _really_ beginning to piss him off with that smug smile it was wearing!

The cat's tail swished lazily as it contemplated him with half-lidded eyes. _Just try it, _it seemed to taunt him. Inuyasha cursed loudly, using several expletives and colorful adjectives to let the insolent creature know exactly what it could do with that attitude.

Standing up, he walked a few paces away from the cursed, festively-adorned tree, frustrated beyond belief. _No insignificant, fat little kitten is going to get the better of me! _he fumed, peeking back at its hiding place out of the corner of his eye as he formulated a plan.

After several long seconds, he pounced towards the cat, which, frightened out of its skin, screeched and scrambled about trying to escape from the branches which had now become its cage. Inuyasha pulled the feline out of the tree by the tail, which he thought was a smooth, deft move that wouldn't harm anything… but the cat, that is.

However, said cat had no intention of being caught.

Yowling, it leaped back into the Christmas tree, running around the branches and knocking down ornaments left and right. Inuyasha, upon seeing that hell had already broken loose, had no hesitation in chasing after it, reaching in and jostling the tree around in his quest for revenge. By the time he caught the fat cat, he had quickly-healing scratches all over his arms, and fallen ornaments littered the floor, many broken, along with hundreds of pine needles.

"Keh! You're in for it now, _buddy_," Inuyasha sneered at the struggling cat. Just before Kagome entered the room.

Her mouth opened wide at the destruction, and she stared at him holding her cat hostage while it fought to be released. The bags in her arms dropped to the coffee table, and he saw her furious intent in her eyes mere seconds before she acted.

_Oh s-_

"OSUWARI!"

Inuyasha swore he could feel the stupid cat smirking at him even with his face buried painfully in the hardwood flooring.

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note- Poor, poor Inuyasha.<p>

Review? I'd love it(:


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

These won't necessarily go in order, by the way.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 495<strong>

**Here Comes Santa Claws**

"Hello, Akemi, Hitoshi," Mrs. Higurashi greeted her sister and brother-in-law, opening the door for them. Kagome stood behind her mother with a smile. "You remember Kagome, of course. Souta's already gone over to a friend's house for the night, but he'll be back in the morning."

"Kaori, it's so nice to see you!" Aunt Akemi exclaimed, enveloping her sister in a hug. "And this is our new daughter, Emi. I'm so sorry we haven't had a chance to come over in so very long." The toddler looked up at the other people in the room with big, deep brown eyes. She had a pink bow clipped into her wispy black hair.

"She's precious," Mrs. Higurashi declared, looking at the little girl clutching her father's hand.

"Kagome, has it only been three years?" her aunt asked incredulously.

"Yes, you've grown so tall," Uncle Hitoshi added, grinning.

"Well, I _am _fifteen now," the teen answered her family with a smile. "And how old are _you_, Emi?" she asked, crouching down to look the little girl in the eye.

After a moment of babytalk, Emi answered, "I two!" with a shy smile.

"Such a big girl already!" Kagome told the child, and took her by the hand to play elsewhere while the adults sat down and caught up over tea.

They were up in Kagome's room playing with some of her old dolls about half an hour later when a familiar person made himself known.

"Yo, Kagome!" Inuyasha said as he balanced easily on her windowsill. Emi looked over with her huge dark eyes as she took in the sight of the red-clad hanyou with his long silver hair, perched on the narrow ledge. For a moment, Kagome feared a hysterical outburst from the small child. But then she laughed, and started unsteadily walking across the room towards him.

"Santa!" she giggled. Kagome had to clap a hand over her mouth to keep from bursting into uncontrollable laughter.

Inuyasha just looked baffled. "Uh… Kagome? Why is there a little girl in your room? And did she just call me a 'sandy cloud'?"

This time, her mirth simply could not be contained, and she erupted into wild giggles.

"This is… my cousin, Emi," she finally managed, "and her family… is staying here until… Christmas." She broke out into laughter again for a moment. "And, she thinks… you're Santa Claus!"

"What! There ain't nothin' wrong with my claws!"

Kagome didn't have the ability to explain for several minutes, during which Emi decided she wanted to pet Inuyasha's ears.

"What _is_ it with these Higurashi girls and my ears?" he grumbled, although he allowed Emi to climb all over his shoulders and tug on the twitching white appendages. After she explained about 'Santa Claus' and his involvement in the Christmas holiday, Kagome grinned at the cute scene.

"What can I say, 'Saint Inuyasha'? Must be a family trait." And she laughed once more at his disgruntled expression.

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note- So yeah, I'm waiting till six thirty to post this one while I get another little story ready for you. (: I'm estimating seven chapters for this? Maybe a little more? Depends. ;) Review pretty please!<p>

-Lady E

(Yeah, yeah, forty five minutes late. Whatever. ;)


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 433<strong>

**All I Want For Christmas Is...**

The day was cold and bright. Two weeks remained until Christmas morning, and Kagome Higurashi was on a mission.

"Come _on, _Inuyasha! We only have an hour to find Mama the perfect gift, and we have to hurry!" The raven-haired miko pulled her obstinate hanyou along by the hand.

"But I distinctly heard your mother _say _she didn't want anything for Christmas this year, wench!" Inuyasha's face was set in a scowl, and several other customers edged away from him towards less dangerous aisles.

Kagome then broke into laughter. "Inuyasha, you really don't understand women at all, do you?" She was still giggling as she dragged him to the kitchen department. "Trust me, she wants something."

"Keh."

The high schooler browsed for several minutes while Inuyasha followed along behind impatiently. Finally, they reached an aisle which made Kagome gasp in delight.

"Of course! Mama doesn't have a blender!"

Eagerly, she compared several of the machines while her companion looked on in confusion. "What's a… blender?"

"A machine that chops things up and mixes them together in a bowl for people to eat," she answered distractedly.

Slowly, a diabolical grin spread across the hanyou's face. He immediately grabbed one of the model blenders on display (incidentally, one with a label that said 'Ninja') and began trying, violently and unsuccessfully, to open the top. "To think, if we could find a way to use one of these puppies against Naraku! Your time has such _inventive_ weapons, Kagome!"

The girl just sighed as she noticed the other shoppers quickly vacate the aisle when Inuyasha dropped to the floor and began to beat the contraption against the tile in an attempt to get it open, cursing loudly when his attempts still failed. "Ah yes, your ingenuity in implementing the power of culinary tools to battle our arch enemy is simply _awe_-inspiring, Inuyasha," she commented dryly. "While you're at it, why not boil him in the instant ramen cooker?"

He stared at her in excitement, ceasing his abuse of the stubborn blender momentarily. "You really think that would work?"

Kagome slapped a hand to her forehead.

Twenty minutes and a painful checkout later (Inuyasha tried to insult the cash register and then engage it in a fistfight when it refused to respond), the pair left the store with one blender in a plastic bag.

"Thank _Kami_ we found something," Kagome sighed. She was exhausted. "Now all I gotta do is wrap it, and put it under the tree."

"Tree?" Inuyasha asked curiously. The miko felt a sense of foreboding as she sighed once again and began to explain.

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note: So my computer situation isn't the best right now... but I'm trying. ;) Hope you're still loving the humor! And reviews for any and all chapters are much appreciated. Thanks to Elantina, by the way. I know I'm updating this fast so it's not exactly easy to get a word in edgewise. ^_*<p>

Only a few more to write before I've got this done. Next chapter in... eh, fifteen minutes? Less? See ya then!

-Lady E


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 663<strong>

**Deck the Halls**

"Hurry up Inuyasha, we don't have all day! Mama wants to get the tree up _this afternoon_!"

Grumbling to himself, a certain silver-haired hanyou grudgingly trudged behind the absurdly cheery teenage girl leading the way through the trees to the old Bone Eater's well. "I'm beginning to regret asking you to take me. And can't she do it without us? Why do _we _gotta help?"

"Cause you're the only reason the tree's gonna get up this year!" she answered cheerily. "Grandpa almost put his back out last year trying to set it up, and nobody wants that again, believe me. Mama can use the extra time to get other things ready. Plus, I already volunteered your services to Mama, and she looked so _happy_."

Inuyasha scowled. The wench played dirty!

And so it came to be that, once the tree had been bought, carted home, and set up in the living room (all thanks to his superior hanyou strength, of course), he ended up in the dusty old attic of the Higurashi house with Kagome, rooting through old boxes.

"Keh. I still can't believe I volunteered for this," he muttered, hefting a cardboard box Kagome pointed at over his shoulder. His sensitive nose sneezed in protest as dust was stirred up around him.

Ignoring his complaints, Kagome lifted another box and carried it down the ladder. "Stay up there," she called to him after he handed her his box as well. "I'll be right back!"

Curious, he decided to poke around in the cardboard boxes that littered the floor. In one he found several frightening looking ornaments that he decided to leave alone… hey, for crying out loud, there was a freaky green face that reminded him _way_ too much of his brother's creepy little minion, and one of the people was holding a clear blue stick! A blue stick! What was that supposed to be for, anyway?

He found several funny smelling candles and a whole bunch of colorful paper and ribbons. One box even had a deer with a red nose that sang when you tried to suffocate it! And then he found a box full of green stuff, that looked a lot like plants, but didn't smell like it had ever been alive.

He picked up a little clump of green leaves with white berries. Holding the leaves together was a bright, festive red ribbon. He was still holding up the clump, examining it and wondering about it, when Kagome came back up the ladder.

"Hey, Inuyasha, Mama wants us to- gah!" As he turned to look at her in surprise, he saw that her face was very rapidly turning bright red.

"What's the matter, Kagome?" he asked her. "And, do you know what the heck this stuff is? I found it and it doesn't look like it's ever even been alive."

"That's because it hasn't," she squeaked, her voice oddly high pitched. "It's fake mistletoe, Inuyasha."

"Miss-a-what?"

A long and awkward explanation followed his question, during which they both turned various shades of red and tripped over something on their way down the ladder carrying the box of greenery, which funnily enough started to feel like a box of explosives to Kagome. "Here," she gave the box to her mother and left quickly into the living room where she directed Inuyasha as to the proper placement of the angel on top of the tree.

Mrs. Higurashi opened the worn panels of the cardboard box with curiosity. _Usually Kagome loves hanging up the greenery. _When the woman caught sight of the small, deceptively nonthreatening bundle of mistletoe, however, she let out a quiet laugh as everything clicked into place. _My, my, my. _With a secret smile on her face, she walked to the doorway from the living room to the hallway, where the two would have to exit to get anywhere else in the house, and mischievously hung the bit of greenery on the doorframe.

'_Tis the season, after all. _

_~/~/~_

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><p>Author's Note- Yeps, another chapter. (: Review please!<p>

Lady E


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 539<strong>

**Peace on Earth… But Not in the Kitchen**

The smell of baking cookies filled the house as Kagome surveyed the disaster before her. _How on earth did this happen? Mama's gonna freak._

An hour earlier…

Inuyasha stared at the raw, handmade cookie dough and the kitchen counter covered in flour before glancing over at the preheated oven and five huge bottles of different colored sprinkles. He turned to Kagome, an uneasy expression on his distinctly canine features.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this…"

"Oh, cheer up, Inuyasha," she chirped perkily. "Cookie baking is always so much fun! Mama and Souta usually do it, but they're busy this year so I volunteered our services."

"Yeah, yeah. Just tell me this. Why is it that when there's work that's messy and or highly embarrassing, the rest of your family seems to be mysteriously absent?"

"Oh… shut up, Inuyasha, and start rolling out the cookie dough. I'm sure Mama didn't mean to put the mistletoe _right there_…"

"Keh. Coulda fooled me."

The part that Kagome had been really worried about, which was the flour getting everywhere, didn't happen, so she breathed a quick sigh of relief as the messy white powdery stuff stayed mostly where it was supposed to.

However, the first road block came when it was time to move the cut-out cookie dough from the counter to the cookie sheet.

"No, Inuyasha, you slip the spatula _under _the dough, not squash the gingerbread man's head with it."

And then came the sprinkles.

"Oh no! Not that much! You're getting it all over the floor!"

"Shut up, wench, this is harder than it looks!"

"Inuyasha. I've been doing this since I was in _diapers_ and I never made as big a mess as you're making."

Then, the oven.

"Hey! What are you doing, idiot?"

"You can't reach in there, it'll burn your hands off, Kagome!"

"I'll _purify_ your hands off if you don't get them off of me and let me get the cookies out of the oven right_ now_. The cookies are _burning_."

After the second batch, the miko was about ready to either drop from exhaustion and frustration or strangle Inuyasha, and she wasn't sure which sounded more appealing. _This is like teaching Emi how to eat!_ she thought in exasperation. Finally, the last cookie tray was out of the oven, and the pair were left surveying thirty six colorful, diverse, yummy-looking sugar cookies all laid out on sheets to cool on the counter.

"There," the girl sighed in relief, dusting her flour-whitened hands off on a dishtowel. "Finally done. Oh, hi, Buyo."

The cat meowed and slunk around her legs, purring. She scratched his head. Turning to Inuyasha, more relaxed now that the ordeal was over with, she smiled. "Thanks for helping."

"Feh. No problem."

"I'm going to get cleaned up. Be right back."

Which left the cat and the hanyou alone in the kitchen together, with three dozen freshly baked cookies.

_Oh yeah, _thought Kagome wearily, staring at her flour-covered cat and the hanyou still on the floor from his latest 'sit' command. _That's how it happened._

Christmas was turning out to be so much more of an ordeal than she had planned for.

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note- Gotta feel sorry for Kagome. ;)<p>

Computer issues and my own disorganization have made for a very confusing past half hour, but it's all straightened out now. Drabbles should be finished in an hour or so. Or, if not, at least before midnight.

Review please! ^_^

Lady E


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 553<strong>

**Up On the Housetop… and Down Through the Chimney**

Ever since the mistletoe incident, Inuyasha had been very cautious of mysterious cardboard boxes. So when Mrs. Higurashi came down from the attic ten days before Christmas with another one, he had immediately been on his guard.

However, instead of greenery or creepy ornaments, this box held yards and yards and yards of white lights all strung together. Souta helped him untangle them in the yard while Kagome explained what they were and where her mother wanted them strung. He did the trees with ease, and then once he got to the roof, she handed him a staple gun with a look of apprehension on her face.

Probably because she'd just handed him a new and potentially painful tool to use by himself for the first time while on the roof of her house, and nothing about that situation spoke of anything good.

However, he actually did better than she had expected at first, and proved to be as skilled lining the roof as the trees. Soon she left him with Souta in the yard, satisfied that he'd do just fine. After all, he _was _one of the most physically coordinated people she knew.

Walking into the kitchen, she found her mother seated at the kitchen table, writing out a to-do list for the next week and a half.

"Aunt Akemi and Uncle Hitoshi are coming a week from tomorrow, and there's so much we have to get ready," she told her daughter in a worried tone. "We have to clean the whole house, for one, and get all the Christmas decorations up as well."

"Don't worry, Mama, it'll get done," Kagome said with a smile. "After all, we have Inuyasha to help us this year, don't we? Why don't I sit with you and we'll figure out how to divvy up the chores."

"Thanks, dear. What would I do without you? And Inuyasha, for that matter?"

"No problem. Hey, speaking of him, do you think we'll have enough places to sit in the living room once Aunt and Uncle get here? There's just the one couch and the armchair; even me, Souta, and Inuyasha have trouble sitting together comfortably on the couch, we're all squished."

"We'll move in some furniture from the dining room," her mother answered absentmindedly. "Did you just hear a thud? It sounded like it came from somewhere down here."

"A thud? No. You must be hearing things, Mama."

All of a sudden, Souta came running in from the cold air outside, his eyes wide. "Chimney- Inuyasha," was all that he gasped out before dashing to the living room. Exchanging a worried glance with her mother, Kagome hurriedly followed her brother, Mama right behind her.

The sight that met them made Kagome want to laugh and hit herself at the same time. A twitching red figure was faceplanted in the fireplace, groaning loudly. Kagome thought she recognized her own name, as well as several expletives and the word "rosary". Her family turned to stare at her, stunned.

"Don't look at me! All me and Mama were doing was… discussing… the seating… in the living room… he, he… oops?"

As the hanyou raised his angry golden eyes to her anxious brown ones, she laughed nervously. "Sorry, Inuyasha… um… Merry Christmas!"

"Kmph."

~/~/~

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><p>Author's Note- Okay so I've got 11 chapters planned. Only two more really need to be written, and then there's hopefully going to be a bonus chapter by Elantina who's decided to contribute. ^_^ Next update will be probably by eleven.<p>

Thanks for reading! Review please!

Lady E


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

Author's Note- Here's the second part of Chapter Two. Believe it or not, this little story actually has a purpose. (:

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><p><strong>Word Count- 596<strong>

**Have Yourself a Beary Little Christmas**

**Part Two**

The next year passed, with momentous events. Falling through a well into the Feudal Era really hadn't been on Kagome's "plans for the future" list, but she was learning to cope, and to even enjoy some of it. After all, her new friends were certainly interesting.

Soon, Christmas Eve came again, and it found her thinking over the small stuffed bear in her arms, lying on her bed. That's how Inuyasha found her, as well.

"Hey, Kagome," he called, climbing through her open window and shaking out his hair, as it was sprinkling cold rain outside. "What ya doing?"

She had to stifle a laugh as she sat up and watched him dry off. Sometimes, he really did act like a big puppy. As if in accordance with her thoughts, his ears twitched in his mass of white hair, and the similarity had her glancing down at the bear in her lap.

"Oh, not much," she answered. "Just praying for this teddy bear."

The look he gave her was priceless.

"No, I'm not stupid or crazy, Inuyasha," she cut off any incredulous remarks before they made their way out his mouth. Her tone was easy and also rather soft as she never took her eyes off of the stuffed animal. "This was a present last year, from Mama, and… and, well, it's kinda… special."

He walked up to the bed where she'd pulled her knees up against her chest and sat on the edge beside her, looking at the toy with curiosity now, though his front of derision was still in place. "What's so special about a little stuffed bear?" he asked, picking it up and hanging it upside down by a furry leg as he considered it.

"Careful with that!" she warned him, snatching it back away from his careless claws. "It's for my first… my first baby, in the future, okay? So be gentle!" Her face was red as she imagined his expression at her words, too embarrassed to actually look at his face.

"Your first… baby?" he asked quietly, an endless moment later. She nodded, still staring at the bear.

"Well, y'know, I saw it and it was soft and the ears were cute, and I guess, well, um, it looked like something a baby might like, and, um, I just kinda decided to-" her babbling was cut off as Inuyasha took the toy from her again, this time with more care, and she lifted her head in surprise.

His sharp claws were just centimeters away from the soft fabric, and yet she wasn't worried at all when she saw how gently and cautiously he handled it. _What's up with Inuyasha? _Kagome wondered as she struggled to read his expression.

Finally, brown eyes met amber as he handed the bear back to her. "I… I didn't know you ever thought about… that stuff," he muttered, looking away.

_Does that mean… he does? _"I think every girl does," she answered him in a soft tone.

"Hey," he affixed her with his golden gaze suddenly. "When this is all over… well, y'know, when Naraku's dead… what I mean to say is… keh!" And with a sudden curse he leapt off of her bed and launched himself out the window again.

Blinking, a slow smile spread across Kagome's face as she watched him leave, because for the first time, she thought she could hear what he couldn't say. She again considered the bear.

_A baby of mine… with animal ears, huh? Perhaps, not so strange, after all?_

_~/~/~_

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><p>Author's Note- Three chapters to go! I love Elantina's contribution, she just sent it to me. (:<p>

Next up is the long awaited Christmas morning! Give me ten/fifteen minutes haha. My fingers are flying in an attempt to get this up before midnight!

-Lady E


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 665<strong>

**Christmas Wish**

"Kagome! _Kagome! _Wake up!" whisper-yelled Souta in his sister's ear.

"Mm… five more minutes," she grumbled, rolling over and checking the alarm clock. "Souta, it's five in the morning! Wait another hour… or four."

"Come _on, _sis, you gotta come see what Santa brought!" And he kept on like this until she woke up halfway and rolled out of bed.

"Souta, you better pray I get good stuff this year, because otherwise, you're dead," she yawned, glaring at her brother through half-lidded eyes.

Two hours later, the entire household was up, including Emi and Grandpa, and they had just settled in the living room to pass around the presents from under the tree (fixed after the disaster with Buyo) when a knock at the door was heard.

Mrs. Higurashi checked her watch in surprise. "Who could be calling at seven fifteen in the morning?"

The answer, of course, was Inuyasha himself. Who else?

He was introduced to Aunt Akemi and Uncle Hitoshi as Kagome's boyfriend. Both were so used to this routine by now that barely a blush rose on either teen's cheeks… although when Emi suggested they play kissy-face, the poor hanyou turned beet red and looked away.

He was wearing jeans and a black t-shirt, with a baseball cap of course to cover his ears, and Kagome thanked Kami for Souta. _Perhaps he'll live to see another Christmas after all. _

The presents were passed around and opened. Inuyasha seemed fascinated by the stockings, especially, and even stuck his head in one before discovering that the opening wasn't quite wide enough to stick his nose in all the way and got stuck for a few minutes. He was pleasantly surprised when Mrs. Higurashi, Kagome, and Souta all gave him a gift, and also when he discovered that he had his own "giant sock" as he labeled the stockings that hung on the mantel.

His presents were trifles from all three of them, but he seemed to appreciate them all the same, and Kagome smiled in happiness. Christmas with Inuyasha was turning out to be pretty good after all. Even Emi's random outbursts of "Santa Claus!" in his direction didn't faze him, and he seemed genuinely happy to be with her, too.

At around ten o'clock, after breakfast, when the adults all went back to bed for a long nap, Inuyasha took Kagome outside. "I have a present for you, too," he told her, and she thought he seemed very, very nervous.

"You said that Christmas was about family, right?" he asked her as soon as they were alone. The Goshinboku's wide branches swayed overhead as they spoke.

"Mmhm," the girl nodded, curious. What could he possibly be so scared about?

"Do you… do you consider me family?" he questioned, looking into her eyes.

She was taken aback by the suddenness of the query, but answered with a firm, "Yes. Absolutely."

"Well… um… hold out your hand and close your eyes," he said quickly. She did as told, palm down, and waited.

She felt something rough and yet smooth encircle her left wrist, and a cool, hard something lay against the back of her hand. Opening her brown eyes in surprise, she stared at the most beautiful bracelet she'd ever seen. It was made from what looked like braided hemp cord, and attached to the middle was… was…

"It's my fang," he told her, looking away, red dusting his features. "It's… well… your mother told me you were familiar with… promise rings? This is sort of… like that."

She stared at him, lost for words, and then she threw her arms around his neck with no other preamble. "Thank you, Inuyasha," she whispered in his ear. "It's the perfect Christmas present… and so are you."

It was heaven in his arms, and she never wanted to let go. The image of her first, beautiful little baby with the white puppy ears grew more solid in her mind.

If only she'd have known what to wish for before, this would have been her best choice of all.

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><p>Author's Note- Almost done! I'm working frantically right now. Fifteen minutes left, agh! o_o<p>

Review!

Lady E


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer- I don't own Inuyasha.

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><p><strong>Word Count- 199<strong>

**Silver & Gold**

In a small, modest home in the forest, a mother stood and admired her house with pride. It was bedecked in red and green, and ornaments adorned the tree that stood in her family room. Presents wrapped in cloth sat under the branches. Mistletoe hung from the doorway, and candles lit up the inside as well as any incandescent lightbulbs. The smell of fresh baked bread still hung around the kitchen. The moon was high in the sky. One could feel the magic in the air.

Her husband came up from behind her and embraced her, his silver hair entwining with her raven locks, and then he followed behind her as she slowly walked to a smaller room. His golden eyes gilded everything in their light, making priceless treasure out of ordinary things.

It contained a much greater treasure than any lying under the tree in the other room. This was a child, a baby girl, with raven black hair and beautiful, tiny white puppy dog ears. Her golden eyes were closed in sleep.

"Merry Christmas," Inuyasha whispered to Kagome.

"Merry Christmas," she murmured back, and turned around to meet his lips halfway in a kiss.

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><p>Author's Note- Short and sweet. Love epilogues(: One more chapter to go! Ah, only nine minutes! =

Lady E


	12. Chapter 12

**Me no own Inuyasha! XD**

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><p><strong>Word Count- 549<strong>

**You're A Mean One…**

The dark mauve mists of miasma teased and prodded at the air, poisoning it with its venomous fangs until the air was completely overwhelmed by the toxin. The fog completely submerged the cave, obscuring it from the world outside the miasma's barriers. However, in the cold twilight, the faint illuminations from the dying stars were running their fingers over an unfamiliar paper covering a strange oval-like object, an object that resided outside of _his _cave. The paper was scarlet and shone like several compacted rubies. A portly man in a red and white suit with a long, curly beard danced across the paper excitedly, his lips curved into an infectious smile and his rosy cheeks wordlessly expressing his joy. At the top was a red ribbon, which curled around the present like two crimson serpents.

To Naraku, it was the ugliest thing he had ever seen.

His lip curled in disgust as his fingers reached to stroke the paper. It was smooth yet rough, flimsy yet strong, and it hid the object perfectly from his view. His finger hooked under the sticky material that pieced the object together and, with a deep breath, he began to lift it. The paper began to fall to the ground. Little by little the paper fell, the dancing chubby man snickering at him as he was thrust to the dirty ground. At last, the paper was gone and the object was in his view. It was _his _now! But…there was problem, a _huge _problem, one that made Naraku's brow furrow.

He didn't know what it was.

It was a strange bowl that was made of glass, though it sat upon a black platform that was decorated by several pushy-things. But what caught his attention and kept it were the blades inside the glass bowl. Was this some sort of weapon? It was the strangest weapon _he _had ever seen. What warrior would use _this _load of crap? He'd be defeated the moment he introduced it to his opponent!

It was then that he found the card.

_To Naraku,_

_Roses are red,_

_Violets are blue,_

_Your crap stinks _

_And so do you._

_May you have a very Un-Merry Christmas! And remember the Inu-tachi whenever you use this blender. Have fun trying to work it! Electricity won't be invented for a couple of centuries. So, until then, good luck trying to figure out what it does!_

_Punches and kicks and hopes for a very Unhappy New Year!_

_-The Inu-tachi_

"Inuyasha," he growled, glaring daggers at the so called "blender". "You will pay for this, you worthless hanyou!"

He slammed his fist onto the platform, only to have the "blender" roar to life under his touch. Naraku jumped back, utterly surprised, and stared skeptically at the churning blades. _'What do humans _use _this for, anyway? To kill themselves?' _Slowly, he drew closer, peering at the rotating blades and resisting the urge to stuff his fingers in his ears to repel the bothersome sound it was creating.

Then, Naraku did the most un-Naraku thing-he tripped over a rock, and his head fell into the bowl.

Let's just say Naraku figured out on that Christmas what a blender's purpose was to humans.

And that was for chopping food up…whether you were food or not.

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><p>Thank you so much to Elantina! I loved thisX) Guess which Christmas movie the title is from? Haha.<p>

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! Hope you've enjoyed this!

Lady E


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